


Company

by Leni



Series: Cora's Daughter [8]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-24
Updated: 2018-03-24
Packaged: 2019-04-07 07:16:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14075820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leni/pseuds/Leni
Summary: In certain matters, ignorance truly was bliss.





	Company

**Author's Note:**

  * For [imgilmoregirl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/imgilmoregirl/gifts).



> @imgilmoregirl asked Rumbelle + “You are doing it wrong.” Set in Cora’s Daughter.

Rumpelstiltskin smiled at the sight of his stubborn princess struggling to mend a tear in her favorite walking dress. So far she had managed not to stab her own thumb, but among her grumbles and sighs, it had become obvious that the exercise exceeded her abilities.

His fate, it seemed, was to join himself to women who had no talent for household chores.

“If you’re trying to help me,” Belle said, in a tone measured a precise notch below sharpness, “you’re doing it wrong.”

His lips quirked into a smile. Defiance was a good look on her, even when she was only objecting a few sniggers at her expense. “And if I’m only amusing myself, milady?”

A flush ran up her cheeks, but she didn’t avoid his gaze as she would have done only a few months before. “Then you can…” Her lips pressed together, nervous, but she pressed onward. “Then you can contemplate your bad manners alone in your tower tonight.”

He raised an eyebrow, surprised that Belle would choose to threaten his right to her bed, even in jest. She so often acted as if her role as his mistress was the only reason he kept her safe and in comfort, and he didn’t know how to disabuse her of the notion without actually keeping away.

His silence lasted too long.

“I- I mean…” Her face had paled. Her hands clutched at her half-mended dress anxiously.

Rumpelstiltskin tutted, pretending not to notice her fright. “Well, then, Your Highness. You win,” he said swiftly, unwilling to hear an apology. Then he bent at the waist, as gallant as a knight at court. “Your servant, my dear. I’m all helpfulness.”

Belle stared at him, shoulders relaxing fraction by fraction until he winked and provoked a giggle. “You’ll really help me?” she asked, eyes filling with delight.

He had planned on a minor spell to repair the fabric, but her joy at his company proved too tempting. Instead he conjured a needle and thread, one in each hand; and with a little smirk, appeared by her side.

Her chair was meant for a single person, but two small people made a tight, cozy fit.

Belle flashed him a little smile even as she shifted into a more comfortable position. “Thank you, Rumpelstiltskin.”

Rumpelstiltskin grinned, flicking her nose playfully. “Anything for you, dearie.”

If the glib joke felt heavier than intended in his tongue, Rumpelstiltskin ignored the odd feeling.

In certain matters, he well knew, ignorance truly was bliss.

 

The End  
16/03/18

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are love!


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